June 22, 2012
Trent J. Perrotto
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-0321
trent.j.perrotto@nasa.gov
Dan Huot
Johnson Space Center, Houston
281-483-5111
daniel.g.huot@nasa.gov
MEDIA ADVISORY: M12-120
ASTRONAUT REX WALHEIM AVAILABLE FOR INTERVIEWS ON NASA'S ORION
HOUSTON -- NASA astronaut Rex Walheim will be available for live
satellite interviews in front of a full-scale model of the Orion
spacecraft from 6 - 7:30 a.m. CDT, Thursday, June 28. Interviews will
originate at the agency's Johnson Space Center in Houston. The first
space-bound Orion capsule is set to arrive at the agency's Kennedy
Space Center in Florida next week.
Walheim is the Astronaut Office's main liaison with the Orion Program.
He provides input from an astronaut's perspective on Orion's design
and testing process. Walheim was one of four NASA astronauts to fly
on the final space shuttle mission, STS-135, in July 2011.
Orion will be used to carry out the uncrewed Exploration Flight Test-1
(EFT-1), launching from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla., in
2014. At Kennedy, Orion's heat shield will be installed and the
capsule will undergo final assembly and checkout operations. EFT-1
will be the first spaceflight of NASA's next-generation crew vehicle
and send the capsule farther into space than any human spacecraft
since Apollo 17's return from the moon.
Walheim is a native of San Carlos, Calif., and a 1984 graduate of the
University of California, Berkeley. He received a commission as a
second lieutenant in the United States Air Force in May 1984,
eventually serving as an instructor at the United States Air Force
Test Pilot School before NASA selected him as an astronaut in 1996.
He received a master of science degree from the University of Houston
in 1989.
To arrange an interview, news media representatives must contact Karen
Svetaka at 281-483-8684 or karen.a.svetaka@nasa.gov by 1 p.m.
Wednesday, June 27.
The NASA Live Interview Media Service (LIMS) satellite will be used
for the interviews. LIMS satellite parameters will be provided by
NASA to confirmed clients.
For NASA Television streaming video, downlink and scheduling
information, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/ntv
For Walheim's biography, visit:
http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/htmlbios/walheim.html
For more information about Orion, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/orion
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